Gene Unlocking: I Evolve Every Day

Chapter 188: Chapter 191: Materials Are King

The next day, Lu Li and Engineer Fu flew to Chang Chun.

Around four or five in the afternoon, he met Wang Jun.

East Bay Peninsula, in a large flat unit.

Wang Jun’s wife was making dinner, and their seven or eight-year-old daughter was doing homework.

Lu Li watched with great interest at the forty-something, bespectacled, stern-faced Wang Jun in front of him.

Engineer Fu was trying to persuade Wang Jun, ”Brother Wang, Mr. Lu is sincerely inviting you to work for him. Before coming, I already asked for you, and the salary and benefits are all negotiable, definitely much better than what you’re getting at FAW.”

Wang Jun had just gotten off work and was still wearing his work clothes.

He frowned and said, ”Xiaofu, it’s not about the salary and benefits, I never thought about leaving FAW.”

Engineer Fu blinked and said, ”Chang Chun is quite isolated. Haven’t you thought about moving to a better place for development? Even if you don’t want to go, when your niece grows up, don’t you think she’ll have to go out?”

Wang Jun was silent for a moment, finally shaking his head resolutely, ”I’m doing well at FAW, I really don’t want to switch jobs.”

Lu Li heard his sincere tone, seeing that it would be hard to persuade him.

He knew that just talking about salary and benefits, no matter how much he promised, the other party might not agree.

With this in mind, Lu Li proactively asked, ”Engineer Wang, may I ask, why do you insist on staying at FAW? I’ve heard from Engineer Fu, with your technical skills, you could be the chief engineer of any large domestic automaker’s technical center, but FAW only has you as the deputy. It’s really wasting your talent.”

Although Wang Jun had a bit of a temper, he was straightforward.

He honestly said, ”Mr. Lu, to be honest, the reason I want to stay at FAW is that the platform here is large enough to fulfill my ambitions.”

Lu Li asked, ”Can I ask what your ambition is?”

Wang Jun said, ”I want to develop a world-class internal combustion engine, and currently, it seems only FAW has the capacity to let me realize this grand ideal.”

Lu Li paused, and could not help but smile at Engineer Fu.

He finally understood what Wang Jun really wanted.

The man wasn’t greedy for money, but wanted to make a name in history.

If it were other requirements, he might not be able to satisfy them.

But this quest for historical recognition, he might really be able to fulfill.

Engineer Fu also seemed to realize this, smiling, ”Haha, Brother Wang, I can’t speak for other requests, but if it’s just this, then I advise you to accept Mr. Lu’s offer. I’m confident you can achieve your ideal.”

Wang Jun was puzzled and asked, ”Why do you say that?”

Engineer Fu said, ”Do you know about E. coli?”

Wang Jun nodded, ”As someone in engine development, how could we not know E. coli? This bacterium is remarkably similar to an engine; it also has a ’stator’ and ’rotor’, but unlike ordinary engines, scientists have discovered its working principle through research. Sodium ions and hydrogen ions flow into the cell through the ’stator’, and the interaction of the ion current with the ’stator’ and ’rotor’ generates the rotational force needed for motion. The ’stator’ undergoes structural changes induced by charged particles traveling through internal channels, converting electrochemical energy into mechanical force, thus driving flagellar motion, reportedly achieving over 100,000 rotations per minute.”

”150,000 rotations,” Engineer Fu corrected with accurate data.

Lu Li had remained mostly silent, allowing Engineer Fu to persuade Wang Jun.

”Whether it’s 150,000 rotations is unclear.” Wang Jun recalled information and said, ”But as far as I know, E. coli can achieve one hundred percent energy conversion, this...”

Engineer Fu interrupted without hesitation, ”I’m certain it’s 150,000 rotations.”

Wang Jun pushed his glasses and asked, ”How do you know it’s 150,000 rotations?”

Engineer Fu looked sincerely at him, ”Because Mr. Lu has already drafted the design of the E. coli engine, and I’ve simulated the data in 3D, and the test results confirm this number.”

Wang Jun was taken aback, incredulously saying, ”How is that possible? Science has long proven that flagellar structures are irreplicable because E. coli wouldn’t function unless all its parts exist. If flagella can’t be replicated, that represents...”

Engineer Fu interrupted again, ”But the fact remains. If you don’t believe it, we’ve brought the design diagrams with us, and you can verify if they’re correct yourself.”

Wang Jun skeptically said, ”Alright, let me have a look.”

Lu Li took out the prepared design diagrams from his briefcase and handed them over.

Wang Jun took them and looked down at them for quite a while.

During this time, his wife asked if he wanted to have dinner, but he was so engrossed that he told her to wait.

About ten minutes later.

Wang Jun raised his head in some surprise, his expression quite peculiar.

Engineer Fu smiled and asked, ”So? Do you believe it now?”

Wang Jun shook his head with a smile, ”From the diagrams, theoretically, this engine can be manufactured, but there are many issues, like insulating materials...”

Engineer Fu interrupted once more, ”The insulation material issue has also been solved. Mr. Lu has made contact with the aerospace side, acquiring the most advanced insulation materials, completely capable of handling the high-temperature insulation needed for 150,000 rotations.”

Wang Jun continued to analyze earnestly, ”Alright, even if the insulation material can be solved, what about other materials? I’ll give you a simple example, for components like the crankshaft, piston, and connecting rod, what materials do you plan to use to withstand 150,000 RPM? Although turbine engines can reach tens of thousands of RPM, the crankshaft and connecting rod shaft are different from the turbine shaft, and currently available internal combustion engine bearing materials on the market can’t meet such demanding requirements.”

To be honest, Lu Li had also been considering this issue all along, knowing that finding the right material was difficult. But ever since developing the superpower of consciousness projection, he now had the possibility to develop such adaptable materials.

Now there was only one problem, which was that he hadn’t had much exposure to various materials used in engine manufacturing, so he couldn’t simulate them.

Actually, this problem was easy to solve. By using consciousness projection to scan enough materials, he could easily simulate new ones.

Lu Li asked with deep eyes, ”If I say that I can design a material that meets the requirements, Engineer Wang, would you be willing to work for me?”

Wang Jun’s eyes lit up, ”Are you sure you can design such a robust material?”

Engineer Fu looked very surprised.

Because materials are a lifeblood matter for any country in the world.

How could it be possible to design it immediately upon wanting to?

Generally speaking, the cycle of designing a new type of steel is at least three to five years.

If it’s steel that meets the rotational speed of an E. coli engine, I’m afraid it would take at least ten years of development.

It was precisely because of this that Engineer Fu was surprised to hear Lu Li say this.

He thought Lu Li was just boasting.

Lu Li said confidently, ”Yes, I’m very sure. If you believe me, Engineer Wang, let’s borrow your laboratory tomorrow, and I’ll design it for you on the spot!”

What?

You’re not just bragging?

Engineer Fu didn’t expect Lu Li to be serious, and suddenly became interested, wanting to see what kind of steel he would design to meet the needs.

Perhaps Wang Jun was too much of a workaholic, and upon hearing Lu Li’s words, he suddenly stood up and said, ”Mr. Lu, if you are really confident, let’s not wait until tomorrow. I’ll inform the leadership, let’s go now!”

Lu Li also stood up and said, ”Okay, let’s go now.”

...

FAW Group laboratory.

A group of designers and engineers had already left work, but they received news from the leadership saying that someone claimed to design a new material that could meet the harsh requirement of an internal combustion engine running at 150,000 revolutions per minute.

As a result, this group of designers and engineers all rushed over to see what was going on.

Including FAW’s president, vice president, and others, all came to the site in person.

There was no way around it, if someone could actually design such a new material, it would be an epic breakthrough in the industry.

Of course, everyone had to come and see.

Moreover, to be blunt, if someone truly designed such a material and FAW could obtain authorization, it would definitely far exceed peers and seize more market share.

In the laboratory.

Dozens of people stared at Lu Li, who was looking at materials and whispering there.

”Do you really think he can design such a new material?”

”I feel it’s unlikely. For the steel currently available on the market suitable for internal combustion engines, to meet such harsh requirements, it would take at least another twenty to thirty years of development. How could a young man like him possibly design such advanced materials alone?”

”Hmm, I think so too. It’s not that I’m judging by appearance, but generally, the development of such materials is completed by a team and takes years of time. How could one person do it?”

Especially a few materials engineers over there were continuously denying it.

It’s not that they looked down on Lu Li.

But because they understood materials too well.

They knew how high the difficulty was.

FAW’s President Liu and Vice President Hu were also quietly discussing over there.

”President Liu, do you think it’s possible?” Vice President Hu inquired.

President Liu, staring at Lu Li squatting over there, gently shook his head and said, ”I think it’s unlikely. Tonight, I came over just to be on the safe side. If he really can design it, I hope to get authorization as soon as possible.”

Vice President Hu nodded and said, ”If he really can design such a demanding new material, then the entire automotive industry might undergo earth-shaking changes, especially with internal combustion engines. This new type of material would definitely shock the world.”

While everyone was discussing, Lu Li suddenly stood up.

He looked around and said, ”Do you have paper and pen? I’ll write down the material ratios, and you can synthesize them for me, then test them.”

Huh?

So quickly thought of how to adjust the new material ratios?

Everyone didn’t believe it and had to see if the material ratios given by Lu Li could meet the requirements.